Pencil



Aug? 1951 .A. REFSDAL 2,563,551

PENCIL Filed May 10, 1949 ET E1- M?U/7Z%7 i M e/$54424: W M

Patented Aug. 7, 1951 UNlTED STATES PATENT OFFICE PENCIL Anfinn Befsdal, Lilleaker, near Oslo, Norway Application May 10, 1949, Serial No. 92,405

2 Claims. (Cl. 120-14.1)

The present invention relates to pencils of the kind in which a replaceable lead can be advanced stepwise by manual actuation, for example by pressing a knob projecting from the rear end of the pencil.

More particularly the invention primarily relates to pencils of the kind referred to, in which a manually operated actuating member, which conveniently may be formed as a storing receptacle for receiving a plurality of leads, is adapted to move a resilient gripping member, surrounding the lead, forwards so as to advance the lead to a position in which an annular member which keeps the same in a gripping position by camming action, is withheld, thereby permitting the grip-- ping member to loosen its grip on the lead, whereby a retracting spring acting rearwards on an enlarged rear portion of the gripping member displaces the latter back again into engagement with the clamping annulus and hence into engagement with the lead.

An object of the present invention is to provide a pencil of the kind described, which is cheap in manufacture and reliable in operation, and more specially to reduce the number of the component parts involved as well as the overall costs for materials used and for machining and mount- Another object is to provide a pencil of the kind described which includes storing receptacles for refill leads of relatively large dimensions as compared with the overall dimensions of the pencil.

These and further objects of the invention and the manner in which they can be achieved will be apparent from the following specification, reference being had to the drawings which illustrate merely by way of example an embodiment of the pencil according to the invention, and in which Fig. 1 illustrates the pencil in longitudinal section,

Fig. .2 is a front view of the same, and

Fig. 3 is a front View of a gripping member used in the pencil.

In the embodiment shown, the outer enclosure of the pencil comprises a casing l and a closure cap 2 screwed into the front end thereof. The casing I and if desired also the cap 2 may consist of a suitable pressure-molded material. The cap 2 is integral with the tapering front portion of the pencil which fits around the lead 3 with lightresilient pressure. In order that this shall be possible with a pressure-moldable material without unduly weakening the structure, the front portion is slotted longitudinally in one side only as shown at 4.

I The casing l is rectilinear over the greater part of its length and serves in itself as a guide for the actuating member 5, which in known manner has the shape of a hollow cylinder in order to serve as ,a storing receptacle for supply leads.

Likewise the casing l forms a guiding means for the enlarged rear end portion ,6 of the gripping member I, which has a conical depression 8 in its rear end surface so as to convey the leads from the storing receptacle into the longitudinal bore 9 of the gripping member. Adjacent the periphery the portion 5 contacts an integral shoulder of the actuating member 5 with a plane contacting surface. The actuating member, which may also be made of a suitable pressuremoldable material, has a shoulder I0 adjacent the rear end thereof engaging an inwardly projecting flange of the casing I and projects through the same with a pressing knob II. In the end wall of the knob there is an orifice [2 of suitable dimension for insertion of one lead at a time into the storing receptacle, and immediately beside the orifice a flap [3 integral with the actuating member projects inwards in an oblique direction.

The flap is made with so small cross-sectional dimensions that it is capable of yielding resiliently during the insertion of the lead, but prevents leads stored in the receptacle from sliding out therefrom.

The gripping member is of a known type. It may consist of metal and have a sleeve-formed portion extending forwardly from the portion 6 and is slotted longitudinally as shown at M so as to form resilient gripping arms i5. The arms I5 tend to move outwards so as to permit free relative longitudinal movement of lead and gripping member, but are prevented therefrom by a surrounding annular member l6, which cooperates with inclined camming surfaces I! on the front portion of the gripping arms so as to force the latter into resilient engagement with the lead 3 under the action of a helical compression spring 18, which bears with its front end on an annular bearing member l9 and bears with its rear end on the end portion 6 of the gripping member.

The member It extends through the member I9 and has a projecting flange 2D in front of the latter. The bearing member 19 is held at its periphery in a groove formed by the rear end surface 2| of the cap 2 and an opposed shoulder within the casing l and hence it will be seen that after removing the screw-threaded cap 2, it is possible to take the whole insert out of the casing l and likewise to mount the whole insert from the front end of the latter.

The manner of operation is the usual. Pressure on the knob l l displaces the actuating member 5 forwardly with a longitudinal sliding movement to push the gripping member I and hence the lead 3 forwards, overcoming the frictional resistance at the point, until the flange 26 is stopped by a shoulder 22 facing rearwardly within the casing. On further advance the arms 15 move resiliently outwards, thereby loosening the grip on the lead 3. Whenthereafter the actuating member and the gripping member are permitted to be returned rearwardly to their Figure 1 position by the spring [8, the arms 55 entrain the clamping member l6 loosely without entraining thelead until the flange 2& is stopped by the bearing annulus I9, whereafter the arms i on further rearward displacement of the gripping member are again clamped together around the lead due to the camming action between the faces ii and the annulus I6. I

It will be understood that the efficient grip of the arms I5 around the lead 3 depends on that the actuating member 5 is not stopped by the engagement with the cap 2 until the camming faces I! are moved a sufficient distance into the member l6. However, this does not require an especially high precision as to the construction of the mechanism or to the diameter of the lead in order that the operation shall be reliable since a certain play of the actuating member 5 will be without any consequence for the feeding operation and for the positioning of the lead during writing.

If both the tubular actuating member and the surrounding casing, which serves at the same time as a guide and as a handle, are made of pressuremoldable material, it is possible in the embodiment shown to make both these members transparent over their whole length or a part thereof, so that it is possible to see whether there are leads left in the storing receptacle and, if desired, even so that it is possible to watch the operation of the feeding mechanism. It may also be of advantage to have the point of the pencil structure transparent so that if a lead should be broken or caught at the front, this may readily be ascertained.

It will be understood that the constructional details shown and described are to be considered as merely illustrative of the invention and by no Way as limiting, various modifications being possible without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

I claim:

1. A pencil comprising an enclosure composed of a tubular casing forming a handle, a detachable closure cap at the front end of said handle, said casing and cap being joined by cooperating screwthreads thereon and having opposed surfaces ing ternally of the casing so as to confine an annular groove therebetween; feeding means having a longitudinal sliding fit within said enclosure, said feeding means including a lead gripping member on said bearing means and said gripping member respectively; and outlet means, for said lead,

formed in said cap at its forward extremity in axial alignment with the passage formed by said gripping member; the diameters of said actuating member, gripping member, clamping means, bearing means and compression spring being such as to permit removal of all said members and means as an assembled unit in a forward direction from said casing after removal of said closure cap.

2. A pencil comprising an enclosure composed of a tubular casing forming a handle, a detachable closure cap mounted at the front end of said handle, said casing and cap having cooperating screw-threads thereon and opposed surfaces internally of the casing so as to confine an annular groove therebetween; feeding means adapted for longitudinal sliding movement within said enclosure, said feeding means forming a lead receptacle and including a lead gripping member and a hollow cylindrical actuating member axially aligned with and abuttingly engaging one end of said gripping member and adapted to slide the latter rectilinearly within said cap in response to its own longitudinal rectilinear displacement; cooperating stopping surfaces on said enclosure and said feeding means for limiting rearward move ment of the latter, said gripping member confining a passage for a lead therethrough and including an enlarged rear portion, forming a front end wall of said lead receptacle, and forwardly projecting resilient arms tending to permit passage of said lead; annular clamping means surrounding said arms and movable longitudinally with respect to said gripping member, said clamping means and said gripping member having cooperating camming surfaces so as to cause a gripping contact of said arms with said lead on rearward movement of said gripping member with respect to said clamping means; annular bearing means withheld between said opposed surfaces, said clamping means and said bearing means having cooperating stopping surfaces limiting rearward movement of said clamping means with respect to said bearing means, a compression spring 7 surrounding said arms and clamping means with its front and rear end on said bearing means and and a hollow cylindrical actuating member axially aligned with and abuttingly engaging one end of said gripping member and adapted to slide the latter rectilinearly within said cap in response to its own longitudinal rectilinear displacement, cooperating stopping surfaces on said enclosure and said feeding means for limiting rearward move ment of the latter, said gripping member confining a passage for a lead therethrough and having forwardly projecting resilient arms tending to permit passage of said lead, annular clamping means surrounding said arms and movable longitudinally with respect to said gripping member, said clamping means and said gripping member having cooperating camming surfaces so as tov cause a gripping contact of said arms with said.

faces limiting rearward movement of said clamp-, ing means with respect to said bearing means, a

said enlarged rear portion of the gripping member respectively, and outlet means for the lead formed in said cap at its forward extremity in axial alignment with the passage formed by said gripping member, the diameters of said actuating member,

gripping member, clamping means, bearing means and compression spring being such as to permit removal of all said members and means in a forward direction from said casing after removal of said closure cap.

AN FIN N REFSDAL/ REFERENCES CITED,

The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 331,612 Bussler Apr. 24, 1888 1,541,953 Hermani June 16, 1925 1,666,405 Caldwell et al Apr. 17, 1928 2,158,991 Stenersen May 16, 1939 2,353,177 Moore -1 July 11, 1944 V FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 182,431 ,Switzerland May 1, 1936' 

